Disney Descendants: Happily Ever After - Ben's Biggest Mistake
by RaInBoWsKuLlDrOpS
Summary: A prequel short story for Disney Descendants: Happily Ever After - after being in a relationship with Mal for a year and a half Ben makes a very hard decision. He breaks up with Mal against his better judgement, but then sharply changes his mind. Is is too late? Will he be able to win Mal back? Or will she always be the one that got away?
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys, I know this probably looks a bit back to front but I came across this idea as I was writing a chapter for 'Disney Descendants: Happily Ever After' however it is already cram packed with ideas so I decided to make this a prequel short for the story. A couple of more shorts might appear so watch this space. I know the main story isn't finished yet but this was too much a good idea to pass up on. And anyway a nice break to get the creative juices flowing - hate it when I get writers block. Much love RSD xoxoxoxoxo.**

* * *

 _*Ben's POV*_

* * *

"You want to break up with me?" I heard her ask.

"I think it is what's for the best" I muttered.

"Why?" She quickly asked.

"What did I do wrong?" She asked as tears started to gather in her eyes.

"Nothing, you've been perfect" I said.

"I can't have been that perfect" she snapped sarcastically.

"I must have done something" she stated.

"Mal I love you-" I started.

"Don't" she warned me.

"Don't you dare tell me that you want to break up with me and then tell me that you love me" she said as she wiped a single tear from her cheek. It broke my heart seeing her like this; I didn't want to break up with her but I didn't think it was fair hurting her. We barely got to see each other and I knew that this bothered her more than she let on.

"Mal please listen. I need you to understand" I said as I took both of her hands in mine but she quickly pulled her hands free.

"What is there to understand?" She asked bitterly.

"You want to break up with me, there's nothing left to understand" she said and she went to stand up but I put my hand on her wrist to stop her.

"Mal I need you to know why I am doing this" I said.

"Fine" she snapped and she looked at me.

"Mal I love you-" I started and watched as she narrowed her eyes in irritation.

"I just don't want to hurt you" I said.

"How were you going to hurt me?" She said sounding confused. I opened my mouth to answer her but she cut me off.

"You have hurt me doing this, so what could you possibly do that is worse than this?"she quickly asked as she started to cry.

"Mal you are so patient with my commitments, I just don't want-" I started.

"Are you kidding me?" She asked incredulously.

"You are breaking up with me because of the lack of time we spend together?" she added as her voice broke.

"Yes" I muttered.

"I just don't think that it is fair on you; to put you through all of that. I'm trying to save you"I pleaded as I watched her face.

"So I didn't do anything wrong?" She asked.

"No" I said.

"You have been patient and perfect" I said as I went to stroke her face but stopped when she flinched away from me.

"Do you really want to do this?" She asked as she looked into my eyes.

"Not really" I admitted and I watched as her eyes lit up.

"Well we don't have to" she suggested eagerly.

"But I have to" I stated.

"Why?" She begged.

"Why Ben? If we love each other, then we can make it work" she said quickly.

"I only want what's best for you" I said.

"Is that a joke?" she snapped.

"No, why would it be. Mal I care abo-" I started.

"Don't" she warned me.

"Don't even say that. If you really cared you wouldn't be saying that" she said.

"Mal it's not fair on you" I said sadly as tears started to gather in my eyes.

"Ben I am patient, I always have been. We can get through this" she pleaded.

"I don't know whether we can" I muttered. I watched as she looked down at the floor and let her hair fall in front of her face to hide it from me.

"Mal" I started as we sat in silence for a few minutes.

"Ben please don't do this" she begged.

"I'm so sorry Mal" I said.

"So am I" she said and she quickly stood up and left the room, slamming the door behind her.

I stood for a long time looking at the door, my mind was continuously repeating the recent events in my mind. I started to blink fast as my eyes started to wander around my office as anger started to boil inside of me. I wasn't mad at Mal - I had no reason to be. I was mad at myself, I was mad at the fact that it had to come to this; for me to give up the best thing that had ever happened to me unwillingly. I don't know why I did it, I thought it was for the best. Yes I love Mal but I thought that because of all of my royal commitments I didn't think it was fair on her. I had only seen her four times in the last month and even though she said that she was fine with it I knew deep down that she wasn't. I broke her heart and it killed me; I promised myself that I would never do that. I felt a sudden rush of rage and with all the beast strength inside of me I swung round and slammed my fist into the wall. I felt a sudden pain in my knuckles but ignored it even when I started to see my knuckles starting to bruise.

"What's happened?" I heard my mother say as she walked into my office.

"I've just seen Mal run out crying" she added.

"We've just broke up" I told her.

"Why?" she asked.

"I didn't think it was fair on Mal" I said.

"What was?" she asked as she walked towards me.

"The lack of time we spend together" I advised.

"Don't you love her? I thought you did" she said as she wrapped an arm around my shoulder.

"I do, that's why it was such a hard decision" I said as I wiped the tears away that had started to flow down my face.

"Ben are you sure you want to do this?" she asked.

"Not really, but I don't want to hurt her" I said.

"I best get on mother" I said walking away from her and sitting down at my desk.

"Ok, well you know where I am if you want to talk" she said as she left the room shaking her head as her eyes caught the hole in the wall that I had just caused.

* * *

 _*Mal's POV*_

* * *

As I ran from the castle my body was still in shock; Ben had broken up with me. I couldn't believe it, correction I didn't want to believe it. Ben was the best thing that had ever happened to me, and I had lost him. He gave the excuse of the lack of time that we had spent together but I had a gut feeling that there was something else going on; and my gut feeling was never wrong. My mind started to frantically wander onto anything that could have caused the break up and sadly I couldn't think of anything.

Another thing that I knew was I now knew what a broken heart felt like; I felt empty inside and my throat was forming a painful lump that made me want to cry. However I had to hold it all in; there was no way I could walk across campus sobbing and crying. That was the last thing that I needed was rumours to start spreading around this early; I groaned to myself as I started to walk onto Auradon Prep grounds - Audrey was going to be difficult to deal with. She always said that we wouldn't last and I was adamant that me and Ben would prove her wrong.

As I started to walk towards my dorm building some other thoughts flew to the fore front of my mind; a voice started laughing at me and mocking me telling me that I was stupid to think that following my heart was the right thing to do. It continued to mock me by saying that I was never good enough for Ben and he was better off without me. I took a deep breath to steady myself as I walked into my dorm building as I continued to fight against my insecurities that I had built up over the last year and a half.

When I walked into my dorm I noticed that Evie was sitting with Doug; I watched as they both turned around to smile at me but I saw Evie's face drop when she looked at my face. She quickly threw a look towards Doug and he nodded instantly understanding that he needed to go.

"I'll see you guys later" he said as he stood up and quickly threw his coat on.

"You don't need to" I muttered.

"No it's ok. It's getting on anyway" he said before he quickly planted a kiss onto the top of Evie's head.

"Love you princess" he said as we walked up to our dorm door.

"Love you too" she answered back as he opened the door. We both watched the door close and Evie then looked back at me.

"What's wrong Mal. I thought that you and Ben were going to have date night tonight" she asked. I looked down at the floor; I couldn't answer her, I couldn't get the words to form to tell her that my relationship with Ben was over. I still couldn't believe it, once the words left my mouth it would start to become a reality and I didn't want it to be. My chest and throat started to burn again and I knew it wouldn't be very long before I broke down. I hated feeling weak and I started to hate Ben for making me feel this way but I then instantly stopped hating Ben. Even though he had broken up with me I still loved him; and I knew that this was going to take me a long time to get over - if I ever was able to.

"Mal is there something wrong?" Evie asked as she quickly stood up and approached me, she entwined her fingers with mine and looked into my face. This action showed me that Evie would be there for me; just like always. A wave of emotion then washed over me and I finally broke down in tears in front of her.

"Hey Mal, what's all this?" she asked as she pulled me into a tight hug. She slowly rubbed my back in attempt to soothe me to the point of being able to speak to her.

"We've broke up" I said in between sobs.

"What?" Evie said as she pulled away from me and placed both of her hands on the top of my arms so she hold me at arm's length.

"It's over, Ben has just broken up with me" I sobbed and I then fell to pieces in front of Evie again.

"What? Why?" she asked.

"He said that he doesn't want to hurt me" I said still sobbing.

"Right" she replied slowly.

"He said he loves me and only wants to best for me" I added.

"Ok" she said.

"He thinks he's hurting me by staying in a relationship with me and barely spending any time with me" I advised.

"I don't understand that. How can he break up with you if he loves you?" she said sounding confused.

"I don't know" I said as I wiped the tears from my eyes.

"Come here Mal" she said as she took my hand in hers and started to lead me to my bed. We both climbed onto my bed and she pulled me to her so I was now snuggled into her.

"I know you don't like to show your emotions Mal, but you know you are safe with me. Just be the way you need to be" she said as she ran her fingers through my hair. I started to sob against her shoulder as she continued to play with my hair and rub my back. I don't know how long we lay like that; but I managed to slip into a peaceful slumber - eventually.


	2. Chapter 2

_*Ben's POV*_

* * *

A couple of days had passed since I had broken up with Mal and I had thought of nothing else since. I was now regretting my decision and I wanted to speak to Mal but I couldn't find her anywhere. She didn't answer any of my texts or phone calls so I guess she needed space. I was willing to give her this; but the more days that went by the more I felt her drifting away from me. I had decided that I was going to see Mal after my meeting after college tonight; fingers crossed she will speak to me.

* * *

I was now on my way to Mal's dorm; and I was feeling nervous. I had hurt Mal by breaking up with her and there was every chance that she wasn't going to forgive me. Hopefully she would give me a chance to at least speak to her; but due to the fact that I hadn't seen her since breaking up with her was making my stomach go into knots.

I knew that Mal was my sole mate; I loved her dearly; that is why it was such a hard decision to let her go. I just couldn't bare with hurting her with our current situation.

I was now stood outside of her dorm knocking at her door and no one was answering; not even Evie. I knew that Mal might not come to the door but I thought Evie would still answer.

After knocking for at least ten minutes I decided to try and ring Mal but she kept knocking her phone onto voicemail.

I sighed, maybe I should give her some more space, but part of me was telling me that I needed to fix this. I wanted to be with Mal and now that I had felt the pain of losing her I knew that things now had to change.

I decided that if Mal didn't want to speak to me at the moment that was fine, but I was still going to text her. I needed her to know that I made a mistake and needed to speak to her.

* * *

 _"Mal, I am so sorry. I understand that you might not want to speak to me at the moment and that you need your space. I just wanted you to know that I have made the biggest mistake of my life by letting you go. I have learnt that I should have put you first; and if you are willing to give me another chance I **WILL** change this. You know where I am if and when you want to talk. But please don't feel like you need to speak to me. I have hurt you and I have broke your heart; something that I promised I would never do. Ben"._

* * *

After pressing send on my phone I then tried ringing Evie and she didn't answer either. I was planning on leaving Mal alone but I just needed to know that she was ok; well as ok as to be expected. I rang her again and smiled when I heard Evie's voice.

"Ben?" she said nervously. I could hear a lot of noise in the background which started to worry me.

"Hi Evie" I answered.

"Is everything ok?" She asked quickly.

"Yeah, I'm just wondering do you know where Mal is" I said hoping that she would tell me. However I knew that all VK's are protective over each other so I knew that Evie might be off with me. I was actually surprised that I hadn't bumped into either Jay or Carlos yet.

"Yes" she said bluntly.

"Where is she?" I asked eagerly.

"Erm" she answered.

"Evie please, I know I've hurt her and I know she proably doesn't want to speak to me. I just want to know how she is" I begged. There was silence on the line for a few seconds and I then heard Evie sigh.

"Well she is hurting Ben, I'm not going to lie to you. However she's closed up and she's not letting on how she really is" she admitted.

"Ok, where is she?" I asked quickly. I knew I had hurt Mal but hearing this broke my heart. I knew it took a lot for Mal to love me; for her to change and decide to become good. I had no idea how breaking up with her would affect her but hearing that she wouldn't even speak to Evie made me mentally kick myself.

"Erm" I heard her say.

"Evie please" I begged again. Now I knew that Mal was hurting I needed to speak to her and try to make it better for her.

"Well we are actually out drinking, Mal asked me to go with her" Evie admitted.

"You're out drinking?" I asked incredulously.

"Is Mal drunk?" I quickly asked.

"She's heading that way, I'm trying not to drink as much so I can keep an eye on her" Evie said and she went quiet again and I now knew what she was doing. She was keeping an eye on Mal.

"Thanks Evie" I said.

"Well she's my friend, I'm going to look after her" she snapped impatiently.

"What bar are you in?" I asked, hoping she would tell me so I could go and find them. I didn't like the sound of Mal being drunk and even though Evie was keeping an eye on her I wanted to protect her. I know that she might not want me to; but I still felt protective over Mal.

"I don't think it is a good idea for you to come looking for her" she stated.

"I need to speak to her, I think I have made a big mistake Evie. I shouldn't have broken up with her" I said. Again I heard her go quiet again.

"You should probably wait until she's sober' she advised.

"It can't wait Evie, it really can't" I pleaded.

"Where are you?" I asked again. I heard he go quiet again and I knew she was contemplating whether she should tell me where they were.

"Ever After" she finally stated bluntly.

"Ok see you soon" I said as I started to quickly walk down the corridor.

"Ok, I need to go anyway. Mal is looking for me" she advised quickly.

"Ok" I said and she quickly ended the call. I quickly placed my phone back into my blazer pocket and started to walk down the corridor; _I'm coming Mal_ I told myself - _whether you like it or not._

* * *

 _*Mal's POV*_

* * *

I was glad that Evie agreed to come out drinking with me; it was what I needed. Yes me and Evie were a couple of months underage; but it didn't seem to be that much of a problem. As me and Evie entered 'Ever After' (a very well known club in Auradon) the loud music hit me and I suddenly felt the vibe. I instantly noticed that it was very crowded; as it was expected to be as it was a Friday night. I turned to look at Evie and she looked very nervous; in her defence she had tried to persuade me against this for the last few hours; but I always knew that she wouldn't let me go on my own.

"Are you sure about this?" She said as she looked around the room.

"Yeah, I only want a couple anyway" I said as I looked for a seat for us. Thankfully I found one quite close to the bar.

"Want to sit there?" I shouted to her. I watched as she nervously nodded. I started to walk towards the seats and as I did this I noticed a couple of men watching us. One was brown haired, green eyes and very muscular, while the other was blonde haired and blue eyes. I noted that the blonde haired one looked very nervous while the other one looked me up and down. I quickly threw my glance to the floor and I slid my hand into Evie's. Both men couldn't have been more that twenty years old.

"What do you want?" I asked.

"Mal we might not get served" Evie said.

"Well we can try, anyway Evie it's not like you haven't drank before" I said as I pulled one brow up.

"I know that but I have a bad feeling about this" she answered.

"Why?" I asked for the countless time today.

"Mal I know that you are hurting, but I don't think drinking is going to help. Maybe if we went back to our dorm we could talk about it" she said with a small smile.

"I don't want to talk about it" I said bluntly.

"Ben doesn't want to be with me, end of" I quickly added. I watched as she sighed and nodded.

"Get me whatever" she said.

"Ok" I said and I turned to the bar. I knew that I would be able to get us drinks; I could manage anything that I put my mind to. It would be a nice change to get drunk with Evie; the last time we did this was two days before we came here - even though she may have had to be persuaded a little bit.

"Two vodka and cokes please" I said to the bar tender. I watched as he looked at me for a couple of seconds and then nodded.

"Of course" he said and went away to get our drinks.

"Thank you" I said as I handed him my money when he came back with our drinks.

"Your welcome" he said as he gave me my change. I smiled at him as I took if from him and then picked our drinks up. I turned around and looked at Evie and she was still nervous. I understood why, but I only wanted a couple of drinks - what harm could that be?

"Here you go" I said handing Evie her drink.

"Someone hasn't lost her touch" she teased.

"Of course not" I said as I sat next to her. As I looked around the room again I noticed that the same brown haired and green eyed boy was still throwing glances my way. This made me a little bit uneasy, I had just come out of a relationship, did I really want to move on this quickly? It had barely been a week; I looked towards Evie as Ben started to fly through my mind. I still loved him and in a way I knew I always would. He was my first love and I could never escape that. But if he didn't want to be with me, then I would have to make myself move on however I knew this was too soon.

A couple of hours into our night out and several drinks and shots later I knew that I was tipsy. Evie didn't seem as tipsy as me but I suspected that some of her drinks hadn't been alcoholic. This was fine by me; I had forced her to come out when she didn't want to.

"What do you want now?" I heard Evie ask.

"Whatever" I slurred.

"Ok" she said and she stood up to go and get us drinks. She wasn't gone for very long when I noticed that someone was stood next to me. I looked up at them and I noticed that it was the brown haired and green eyed man who had been throwing my glances all night.

"Hey" he said as he leant onto our table.

"Hey" I answered back as I nervously swallowed. I glanced towards Evie and noticed that she was now on her phone.

"My name's Ethan, what's yours?" He asked.

"Mal" I answered.

"What a beautiful name" he said smiling.

"Thank you" I said looking at Evie and I noticed that she still hadn't seen that I was talking to Ethan.

"I've never seen you here before but you look familiar" he said standing closer to me.

"I bet you say that to everyone" I laughed.

"No" he said. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Evie look up and I saw her eyes widen.

"So Mal, want to dance?" He asked. I thought for a moment; did I want to dance with him? What would Ben think? A voice in my head quickly spoke to me ' _he wouldn't care, he broke up with you remember_ '. I quickly dismissed this thought and smiled politely.

"Erm" I said and I watched as Evie ended her call with whom ever she was speaking to. I quickly looked at Ethan and he was smiling at me. I had no idea how to react to this; should I dance with him? Or politely decline? Oh I hate how socially awkward I could get.


	3. Chapter 3

_*Ben's POV*_

* * *

I quickly jumped out of the limousine and slammed the door shut; my stomach was tightening with nerves. I just hoped Mal would let me speak to her. I noticed that there was a queue to get in and I looked down at it; I noticed that people had realised that I was stood there. I was about to go and walk to the end of the queue before I heard a voice.

"How can I help you your Majesty?" I heard a deep voice say. I turned and looked at a tall, bald man stood next to the door. It then hit me; he was one of the door staff for the club.

"Erm" I said. He had to know that I was seventeen so I don't know whether he would let me in to see Mal. Also at the same time I didn't want to get Mal into trouble; as this would only enflame our current situation.

"I need to speak to someone in there" I admitted.

"Of course your Majesty" he said and he stood to the side and held his arm out to direct me inside.

"Don't I need to wait in the queue?" I asked.

"Like I would let the King of Auradon stand in a queue" he laughed.

"However no funny business" he added as his face suddenly turned serious.

"Of course not" I said as I walked into the club. The loud music hit me and I winced at the volume of it; I started to quickly look around the room to see if I could see Mal or Evie. And I started to panic when I couldn't see neither. I then sighed in relief when I saw Evie and I started to quickly walk towards her. I started to get worried though as I couldn't see Mal next to her. I was about to tap Evie on the shoulder and I then saw Mal. My chest fell through my stomach as I was now watching Mal dance with some older man on the dance floor. I started to grimace as I watched as she smiled up at him and he smiled back. He then placed both of his hands on her hips and normally I would see Mal push him away but this time she stepped closer to him. My body started to take quick involuntarily breaths as I started to panic. If he tried to make a move I know that I would lose Mal for good. I knew I made a stupid mistake to give her up and I didn't want to lose her. Also if he was going to make a move on Mal I didn't want to watch it; Evie was right I should have stayed away. However if I didn't come looking for Mal would she tell me whether anything happened between her and this man when we did finally speak? I would like to think that she would have done, eventually.

After deciding with a heavy heart to speak to Mal tomorrow; I turned to leave. However I stopped when I head someone shout my name.

"Ben" I heard Evie shout again. I turned around to look at her.

"Evie" I shouted back.

"I'm sorry you have to see this" she said nodding in Mal's direction which made me purse my lips together.

"I thought I would be able to speak to her; I never thought that this" I said nodding in Mal's direction as a lump in my throat prevented me in saying anything else.

"Well I didn't expect it either" she snapped and I looked at her and noticed that she was scowling at me. So Evie was still mad at me; which I expected.

"How did this even happen?" I asked her.

"Well I went to get us another drink and then you rang; that lad started to speak to Mal when I was on the phone to you. When I ended our call I quickly got us another drink and went to speak to Mal. Mal took one sip of her drink and told me that she wouldn't be very long and went off dancing with him. That was twenty minutes ago" she advised.

"So she left you on your own?" I asked.

"She keeps looking my way every now and again, she does come to see me but then he speaks to her and she walks off again" she said as she crossed her arms across her chest. Evie was also annoyed with Mal was well; I would hate to be in their dorm in the morning.

"Mal isn't normally like this" I heard Evie say. I took my eyes off Mal again to look down at her.

"I am annoyed with Mal; but she's drunk so I will forgive her" she added.

"It's you who I won't forgive" Evie said turning and looking at me.

"You and your stupid excuses" she said jabbing me in the chest.

"She loved you and was patient with you and you treat her like this" she slurred at me.

"Evie I'm sorry. I know I have made a big mistake; I've came to see if Mal would talk to me. But I don't know whether she will if he's around" I said looking around at Mal.

"Evie I love Mal, I've never stopped loving her. I thought I was hurting her by never seeing her. Mal is my soul mate; I don't want to lose her" I said frantically into her ear. She pulled away and looked up at me and nodded.

"Well wait around then, maybe if she sees you she'll leave him alone" Evie said. I leant on the table next to Evie and looked at all the glasses that were there - _no wonder Mal was drunk_ I thought to myself. I bit down on my lip hoping that she would speak to me and when I looked up Mal was stood in front of me and she glaring at me.

"What are you doing here?" She slurred as she walked up to me.

"I came to see you" I said with a smile.

"To see me?" She said sounding confused. I watched as she swayed a little bit.

"Yes" I answered.

"Why?" She asked.

"Why would you come and see me for?" She snapped.

"You ended things, I'm not your problem anymore" she sarcastically added.

"Mal you were never a problem" I said as I stepped towards her.

"Whatever" she slurred as she stepped away from me.

"Mal I'm sorry" I said as I took another step towards her.

"So am I" she spat.

"I'm sorry I wasted my time waiting around for you" she added.

"You're right we are not meant to be together. You are always too busy for little old me" she said angrily.

"Mal I care about you" I said trying to calm her down.

"No you don't" she slurred

"Why would you? If you cared you would have wanted to try and make it work instead of just ending things" she said as she started to cry.

"That's why I've come to see you" I said as I moved and stood in front of her.

"Well" she stuttered.

"Well" she stuttered again before wiping the tears from her cheeks.

"Maybe I don't want to see you" she snapped.

"Maybe I'm having enough fun here with my new friend Ethan, without you" she said with a sly grin on her face. I knew that she was trying to hurt me because I had hurt her. Part of me hoped she didn't mean it; but the look in her eye was making me worry in case she did.

"Ethan?" I asked slowly.

"Yeah" she answered smugly as this brown haired, green eyes and muscular man walked up and stood behind her.

"Hey your majesty" he said and then his eyes widened as he quickly looked from me to Mal.

"That's where I know you from, you're the King's girlfriend" he said to her.

"Was" she stated.

"Mal" I pleaded.

"No Ben, just go away. You've already said enough" she snapped as she took another step towards Ethan.

Ok" I said deflated. Maybe Mal needed more space; I knew I had to speak to her but Evie was right I should have waited until Mal was sober.

"I can see that you don't need me" I said sadly as I pursed my lips together.

'No I don't" she snapped.

"Ok, well bye" I said as I quickly looked at Ethan before returning my gaze to Mal.

"Bye!" she shouted and waved sarcastically at me. I turned around and walked away from her; I didn't want to leave her with Ethan but I knew Evie was around. I fought back the tears until I got into the limousine- maybe I had left it too late. Maybe I had really lost her.

* * *

 _*Mal's POV*_

* * *

I had no idea who Ben thought he was, coming and finding me like that. I watched as he left the club with a smug grin on my face and I then looked to Evie and she didn't look very impressed either. However I think that was mainly directed at me not Ben; I had left her on her own long enough. I felt a sudden wave of rage due to seeing Ben and it made me want to go home. _Thanks Ben! Ruining my night!_

"So you and him have just broken up then?" I heard Ethan say as I walked to sit in my seat next to Evie.

"You could say that?" I answered.

"Well he's stupid to let you go" he said as he learnt onto the table so his face was close to mine so I could hear him.

"Maybe, maybe not" I stated. I reached over and slid my hand into Evie's and she squeezed my hand.

"I'm going to go home now" I told Ethan.

"No, don't go" he begged.

"I need to. I'm up early in the morning" I lied. I knew for a fine fact that I wouldn't be getting up till the middle of the afternoon tomorrow with the amount I had just drunk.

"Aww no" he whined and I felt Evie squeeze my hand again.

"Can I have your number?" He asked.

"I would love to take you out one time" he quickly added.

"Erm" I said. Did I want Ethan to have my number? I knew that I wasn't going to want to move on this quick; maybe giving him my number wouldn't be that big a deal. Yes Ben came looking for me; but that doesn't mean anything does it? He could just be a very over protective friend. It then hit me; it was Ben who was on the phone to Evie earlier. That was the only way he would have known where we were. I would mention that to Evie later.

"Mal" I heard which made me look back at Ethan.

"Erm sure" I said panicking.

"Cool" he said passing me his phone. I quickly slid him mine; I noticed that Evie started to squeeze my hand again and this told me that she getting nervous again. We both quickly swapped numbers and then I smiled at Ethan as he returned my phone.

"See you later Mal" he said and he pulled me into a hug. I awkwardly hugged him back.

"See you later Ethan" I said as I went to get up and he pulled me to him and he quickly kissed my cheek. My eyes widened and caught Evie's face and she nervously bit her lip.

"Well bye" I said as he let go of my waist.

"Bye" he said and he waved at the pair of us. Evie nervously waved back and I lead her from the club as we walked hand in hand.

"What was all that with that lad?" She asked as we started to queue for a taxi.

"It was nothing, well on my part anyway. I panicked when he asked me to dance with him and when he asked for my number, I was only being polite" I said nervously as I looking at her.

"Really Mal" she said looking at me.

"Really Evie. Even if Ben didn't turn up I wouldn't have done anything. I know I said a lot of things to hurt Ben tonight but it was only because I'm still angry at him. I could never move on that quick" I said and I pulled her closer so I could tell her something so no one else could here.

"I still love him. I don't know whether I will ever get over him" I muttered. As I pulled away and looked at her she pursed her lips and pulled me to her. I rested my head against her shoulder for the rest of the wait in the queue. Yes me and Ben now had faults on both sides; but now that I had calmed down I liked the fact that he had come looking for me. Fingers crossed I hadn't ruined things with him completely.


	4. Chapter 4

_*Ben's POV*_

* * *

I barely slept a wink all night; all I could think about was whether Mal was ok and whether anything was happening between her and Ethan. I knew she said some of it to hurt me but I couldn't let the fact drop that something may or may not have happened between her and Ethan last night. I knew that it wasn't my place to worry about it anymore but even if Mal didn't want me to be her boyfriend I still classed her as a friend. As her friend I was allowed to still be protective over her right?

I quickly rolled over and sat up in bed; today was Saturday and I had a rare day off. I let my face drop down when I remembered that I had plans with Mal today; but due to the break up that were obviously null and void. Why did I think that this was a good idea? Of course it wasn't! Mal meant everything to me and I shouldn't have given her up.

As I had nothing better to do I decided that I would have to do some coursework that I was a little bit behind on; however to do this I would need to go back to Auradon Prep as all my coursework was in my dorm. I glanced at my bedside clock and noticed that it was now half ten; I would go for around dinner time I decided as I stood up to get ready. At least I've managed to have a little bit of sleep I said as I walked into the bathroom; even though it was very limited.

* * *

It was now half past twelve and I was travelling to campus; fingers crossed I could just go to my dorm and then leave when I wanted to without too much bother. Audrey had spent the latter part of the week following me around campus; she obviously knew that me and Mal had broken up. So she had now resorted to following me around campus all of the time. I only thought of Audrey as a friend so her company was valued; however I didn't like it when she tried to hug me, kiss my cheek or walk around campus trying to hold my hand. I knew that she thought that we should get back together; but I only saw Audrey as a friend. I didn't even know how I was going to get over Mal; if I was ever going to.

Speaking of Mal I glanced up and looked up at her dorm window as I walked past; _I hope she in in there with Evie_ I thought to myself. _She will be_ a voice in my head told me; _Evie wouldn't have let her wander off_ it quickly added. _Fingers crossed_ I thought to myself as I started to walk into the dorm building to go and find my dorm.

* * *

 _*Mal's POV*_

* * *

When I woke up my head felt like a train wreck; I groaned as I put my head in my hands.

"Someone's awake" I heard Evie say. I dragged my duvet over my head as if this would shield me from Evie's lecture that I was just about to get.

"You can hide all you want Mal, but I still want to speak to you" she said. I heard her get up from her bed and I felt her jump on mine.

"Evie" I whined.

"Come on Mal" she laughed.

"Urgh!" I said as I felt her pull my duvet down so she could see my face.

"How much do you remember from last night?" She laughed as I looked up at her through groggy eyes.

"Everything?" I muttered.

"Really" she said as she tried to get me to look at her.

"Yes I got drunk, danced with some dude, argued with Ben and then swapped my number with the dude I was dancing with" I said as I covered my face with my hands.

"How do you feel?" She asked.

"I feel really bad" I admitted.

"Really?" She asked.

"Yes" I muttered into my hands.

"I never meant to dance with Ethan or give him my number" I said into my hands.

"Then why did you?" She asked. I pulled my hands away and looked up at her and noticed that she was pulling a stern face at me.

"I don't know, I panicked. I was only being nice; I was never going to see it through with anything more than that" I said.

"Evie can I admit something to you?" I asked as tears started to gather in my eyes as my mind started to reply the memories from last night.

"Of course" she answered as she reached over and took one of my hands in hers and gave it a gentle squeeze.

"I had no idea how to react when Ethan started speaking to me last night. I wanted to tell him that I wasn't interested but I just couldn't" I admitted.

"You've never had a problem before" she said as she pulled one brow up.

"I know, Ben's changed me quite a lot" I said and I quickly widened my eyes when I started to remember what I said to Ben.

"Oh no" I gasped as my hands flew in front of my mouth.

"What?" Evie asked.

"I've just remembered what I said to Ben" I muttered.

"Evie I didn't mean any of it, I just wanted to hurt him, like he did to me" I said.

"Oh I've really screwed things up now" I said as I slowly sat up and brought my knees to my chest.

"He might not want to speak to me after last night, especially after he came looking for me" I said looking at her.

"Oh that reminds me" I said looking at her.

"Yeah" Evie replied nervously after hearing the tone I had just used.

"You told Ben where we were?" I accused.

"Well he kept ringing and asking" she said quickly.

"He did seem very worried about you" she added.

"I know, and I can't lie and say that deep down I didn't like the fact that he came looking for me. Because I did" I admitted.

"I just keep remembering his face when I told him to go away. He looked so broken" I said as I remembered Ben's face last night.

"Well I don't think he expected to find you dancing with someone" she said.

"Well I didn't expect it either" I said trying to defend myself.

"Look at you, having older men chasing you" she teased.

"Evie" I warned.

"There's only one man I want chasing after me and right now I don't know whether he will ever talk to me again" I said sadly.

"Well there is only one way to find out" she said.

"Yeah" I replied as I hoped that Ben would speak to me. I threw the covers back and went to go into the bathroom but my phone went off. I went and picked my phone up and groaned.

"What's wrong?" Evie asked.

"Ethan's just text me" I said as I started to read it.

* * *

 _"Hey Mal, it was fun spending time with you last night. Do it again sometime? Ethan"._

* * *

"What does he want?" Evie asked.

"He wants to meet up again" I advised.

"Must be nice having a string of men after you" she teased.

"Evie" I warned again.

"I only want Ben, that's if he ever gives me the chance to speak to him" I said as I sent Ethan a reply.

* * *

 _"Hey Ethan, yeah it was fun. Maybe, we will have to see :) Mal"_

* * *

"I'm now going to get ready so I can go and speak to Ben. Hopefully he will speak to me" I said to Evie as I set my phone back down.

"He will" Evie said reassuringly.

"He obviously still loves you" she added.

* * *

I had to go looking for Ben; I knew that there was a chance that he might not want to speak to me after what I said to him last night but I still had to try. I had to explain to him that everything I said was because I was annoyed at him. I knew it was a stupid excuse but I wanted to hurt him just like he had hurt me.

I decided against texting him and just went to find him. I think this was mainly due to the fact that I felt that Ben deserved me going to find him and to speak to him face to face. I owed him that after my behaviour last night; so after Evie wished me good luck as I closed our dorm door the nerves really started to kick in.

I tried his dorm first of all and of course there was no answer. He probably was staying at Auradon castle to keep out of the way of everyone. My mind spitefully started to tell me that it was me that he was keeping out of the way from but I pushed this away. I didn't need this way of thinking taking over my mind; I needed to try and remain confident to some degree so I could speak to Ben - if he let me.

I was now leaving the dorm buildings and was thankful that there wasn't that many people around. Fingers crossed they weren't still there when I came back if things ended badly after my conversation with Ben. Auradon Prep was a lovely school; but it was rife with gossip; and I had been involved in a lot of it this week.

I was just about to walk across the court yard and I then suddenly stopped in my tracks. I saw Ben standing with Audrey and Chad; at least I didn't have to go to the castle. That would have made the conversation awkward with his parents. I then took a deep breath to steady my nerves and started to walk slowly towards them; I would say that he looked like he was in a good mood however I knew Ben better than anyone. I knew when Ben was hiding things from the world and right now he was wearing his mask to hide that he was upset. I just hoped that I wasn't just about to argue with Ben in public; even after last night I hoped that we would be able to be civil enough to each other to speak in private. That was based upon Audrey letting us talk on our own; when I had saw her the last couple of days she had been unbearable to deal with.

However my resolve was broken when I saw Audrey take Ben's hand; I widened my eyes in shock and then quickly span round. Was Ben now with Audrey? No surely not; he had come to see me last night. Or was he only doing that to be a good friend? I pushed the lump in my throat down and started to walk away from them. My mind started to frantically worry, so was this the real reason why Ben wanted to break up with me? So he could get back together with Audrey? How long had this being going on for? Was I ever going to be good enough for Ben? Well it looks like he now has someone who is fitting for him. _A king needs to be with a princess not some street trash from the Isle_ I spitefully told myself. I took a couple of deep breaths to steady myself as I didn't want to start crying is public. I needed to go and think; I needed to go and be on my own. I let my hair fall in front of my face so no one could see my face in case I was unable to stop myself from crying. However I wasn't that lucky.

* * *

"Mal are you ok?" I heard Evie say.

"Leave me alone Evie" I said as I tried to walk away from her. I just needed to be on my own for now. I needed to digest the full situation. At least now I understood; Ben was now with Audrey. I had lost him and there was no chance of getting him back.

"Not when you are like this" she said as she walked after me.

"Now hold on and tell me what has happened" she said as she put her hand on my arm to stop me. She quickly stood in front of me and stepped close to me so we could have a little bit of privacy.

"Have you spoke to Ben?" She asked.

"No" I muttered.

"I didn't need to" I added as I pushed the lump that was forming down my throat.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"I now know the real reason why he broke up with me" I admitted.

"Ok, what's the real reason?" She asked.

"He's back with Audrey" I muttered.

"What?" She exclaimed.

"I've just seen them standing together in the court yard holding hands" I explained.

"But he came to see you last night" she said sounding confused.

"I know, I don't understand it" I said dropping my face to the floor. I knew that I had to end this conversation soon as I didn't know how much longer I was going to be able to last before I started crying.

"He has got me so confused" I admitted sadly.

"Evie I don't think I could cope if he has been cheating on me with Audrey" I begged.

"In fact cheating with anyone" I added.

"I couldn't tell deal with it" I said as I bit down on my bottom lip to help stop me from sobbing.

"Hey come here" she said and she pulled me into a tight hug.

"Ben's a jerk" she muttered.

"Yes he is" I agreed.

"Evie I know you want to speak to me but I need some time on my own to think" I advised.

"Are you sure you want to be on your own?" She asked as she pulled away and looked into my eyes.

"Yes" I said.

"No offence" I added.

"None taken" she replied. As I looked into her eyes for a couple of seconds I knew that she didn't really want to leave me but I knew that she would give me the space that I needed.

"But you know where I am when you need to talk" she offered.

"Ok" I said.

"Thanks Evie" I said as I turned away from her.

"Your welcome" I heard her say as I started to walk away from her, as I continued to fight back the tears that were becoming to much to deal with.

* * *

 _*Ben's POV*_

* * *

I was about to leave campus when I heard someone call my name; when I turned around I noticed Evie was waking quickly towards me and she looked angry.

"A word" she spat at me.

"Of course" I said as we walked off on our own so we couldn't be overheard.

"I thought you loved Mal" Evie said.

"I do" I said sounding confused.

"Whatever" she said.

"Evie can you please explain, you have me really confused" I said.

"Well you came looking for her last night, saying that you had made the biggest mistake in your life" she started.

"Yes that is true" I agreed.

"So please explain to me why when Mal comes looking to for you, she sees you hand in hand with Audrey?" Evie asked.

"Mal was right, there was something else going on" she quickly added.

"How long have you and Audrey been going on behind Mal's back?" She asked.

"Whoa! Evie! I'll stop you right there" I said as I held both hands up to defend myself.

"I'm not with Audrey. She has been following me around since me and Mal broke up she won't leave me alone. She grabbed my hand not so long ago but I can swear to you I love Mal. I don't want anyone else but Mal" I said quickly.

"Hang on" I said as I realised what she had said.

"Did you just say Mal came looking for me?" I asked slowly.

"Yes, but I saw her crying after seeing you and Audrey together. When I spoke to her she said she needed time of her own to think. Ben she wanted to speak to you; but now she thinks you are back together with Audrey" she advised. I could now see that she could see what had happened and she was starting to calm down.

"Oh no" I said as my mood dropped. I might have had a chance to fix things if Mal had found me without Audrey. I needed to speak to her.

"I need to speak to Mal" I muttered.

"You need to go and find her" Evie agreed.

"Thanks Evie" I said and I quickly walked away from her. I had to find Mal and I had to set her straight; I needed to fix things with her and hopefully we could get back together.


	5. Chapter 5

_*Ben's POV*_

* * *

I had a rough idea where Mal would be - her dorm; but if she wasn't there I wasn't going to stop looking for her until I found her. The fact that she came looking for me made me think there was a chance for us to get back together and I had to take it. Also the fact that she came looking for me made me realise that last night Mal didn't mean what she said - in fact she only said it to hurt me. Yes she did hurt me but I hurt her first. I started to feel that things could be OK as long as we were able to talk.

But I now had the problem of Mal thinking that I was back together with Audrey; even if I wasn't able to get back together with Mal I wasn't going to get back together with Audrey. I learnt from my relationship with Audrey that we weren't meant to be so there was no way I was going to go back to that.

As I knocked on her dorm door I was nervous; if she was in there was she going to answer the door to me? There was no answer; so I knocked again. I kept knocking for a few minutes and there was still no answer. I sighed and started to walk away from her dorm; my mind started to frantically wonder about where she could be. I was about four doors away from Mal's dorm when I heard a voice breaking me from my train of thought.

"Are you looking for Mal?" I heard Jane ask.

"Yeah do you know where she is?" I asked as I turned to look at her.

"She's went into her dorm not so long ago but she doesn't look like she's in a good way" she said.

"Oh" I answered. At least I knew why she wasn't answering the door now; she was too upset to.

"Thanks Jane" I answered.

"Your welcome" she said.

"I know you both have broke up but it's nice that your still there for each other. She will speak to you, you've always meant a great deal to her" Jane happily answered before walking away. I watched as she walked away with a smile on my face; hopefully I could get her to speak to me. I walked back to her dorm door and decided to try another tactic.

"Mal" I called out.

"I know I'm the last person you want to speak to right now but please let me in. It's not what you think" I begged.

"We need to talk about everything that has happened. Please let me in" I added. I stood there for a few minutes and I was about to call out to her again but I heard the door slowly unlock. It opened slightly and I then saw Mal look at me through watery and red eyes.

"What do you mean it's not what I think?" She asked as her voice broke.

"Can I come in?" I asked.

"It's not really a conversation that I want to have in this corridor" I added nervously as I looked up and down the corridor.

"Sure" she said as she opened the door. I walked into her dorm and smiled as I heard her lock the door again. Mal always had this thing about locking her door; especially when we were alone. I started to feel better that she had done it this time as I thought it must have meant something. I watched as Mal slowly turned around and walked towards her bed; as she did this she wiped her eyes and then slowly sat down on her bed.

"You can sit down" she said as she looked up at me.

"Thank you" I said as I walked up to her bed and sat down next to her. We sat in silence not looking at each other; obviously both of us were too nervous to speak.

"Mal I'm so sorry" I finally said.

"So am I" she muttered.

"Ben I didn't mean anything I said to you last night. I was annoyed at you and I wanted to hurt you" she started.

"Mal" I said cutting her off.

"Please" she said and I closed my mouth.

"I didn't intend on meeting anyone, but when Ethan asked me to dance I didn't know how to react. I was only being nice, as stupid as that sounds" she muttered as she nervously started to fidget with her fingernails.

"Mal its ok" I said.

"No it's not" she said as she wiped tears that were flowing down her cheeks.

"If you didn't come looking for me nothing more than that would have happened. Yes he seemed canny enough and I did enjoy myself but I didn't want any more than that" she explained.

"Ben can I admit something to you? Even though it probably doesn't matter anymore" she said as she quickly looked at me before she dropped her gaze to the floor.

"Of course, and it does matter Mal" I answered.

"Erm" she said as she pulled her hair from her face.

"All last night I was constantly thinking about you. Like what you would think of me dancing with Ethan, whether you would like me out drinking and-" she said stopping herself.

"And?" I prompted.

"Whether you still loved me" she admitted to the floor.

"Well I can answer all of those questions Mal" I said.

"First of all I didn't like you dancing with him" I said quickly and I saw her face drop.

"I didn't like you out drinking, anything could have happened to you" I said sternly and I saw her bite her lip.

"And finally" I said and I watched her pull her knees together nervously.

"Of course I love you, I always have and I always will" I said with a smile. I saw her smile for a couple of seconds but then her face dropped again.

"Mal what's wrong?" I asked.

"Nothing" she answered.

"There is, what is it?" I said and I reached over and took her right hand in mine. I felt her freeze, so I went to pull my hand away.

"Mal I'm sorry. I didn't mean-" I said but stopped as she relaxed her hand in mine and lightly squeezed it.

"It's ok" she said happily as she gave my hand a light squeeze again which made me smile.

"Please tell me what's wrong" I begged. I saw Mal purse her lips together before she spoke.

"I don't think your girlfriend will be happy that you are here with me" she said sadly as she went to pull her hand away.

"Mal I don't have a girlfriend" I said as I tightened my hand on hers so she couldn't pull her hand away.

"But I saw you with Audrey" she said sounding confused.

"You were holding her hand" she added.

"Yes because she grabbed my hand" I explained.

"Mal you know every time me and you argue Audrey appears, well since I broke up with you she has been following me around. Hugging me, trying to kiss my cheek and she keeps trying to hold my hand. I think she thinks we are going to get back together" I explained.

"I see" she said.

"Mal when you saw me this afternoon she must have just grabbed my hand" I said.

"I've never wanted her to do that, never" I said sternly. I saw her start to smile at me.

"Mal you were right we should have tried to make it work before ending things" I said.

"Mal I made the biggest mistake of my life breaking up with you. I'm so sorry" I begged.

"We have faults on both sides" she said.

"And we can work through them?" I suggested.

"If we both want to" she said.

"I want to" I said hopefully.

"Do you?" I asked nervously.

"Yes" she answered.

"Mal" I said.

"Yes Ben" she replied.

"Would you like a hug?" I asked her. I saw her nod and I moved closer to her and opened my arms to her. She slowly rested her head against my shoulder and I wrapped my arms around her waist. I couldn't help by sigh in relief as I had managed to sort things out with Mal. I suddenly felt brave and I wanted to try and push my luck.

"Mal" I said against her hair.

"Ben" she said against my chest.

"Will you please be my girlfriend again?" I asked slowly. I saw her pulled away slightly and look up at me.

"Yes" she said as smiled.

"A thousand times yes" she said happily and I pulled her into a tight hug.

"Mal I'll never let you go again" I said against her shoulder.

"Ben I never want to leave" she said against my shoulder.

"Ben please don't leave me" she begged.

"Never" I immediately said and tightened my arms around her waist.

"I have my beast back" I heard her happily say.

"And I have my dragon back" I replied against her hair. I felt her tighten her arms around me; I don't know why I did it but it felt right but I pressed a kiss against the top of her head. I watched as she slowly looked up at me.

"Too soon?" I asked.

"No" she said shaking her head.

"In fact" she said as she looked into my eyes.

"I liked it" she said.

"Good" I answered back. We started to stare into each other's eyes and our faces started to gravitate towards each other. Everything turned into a blur as Mal's lips connected with mine. I was a little bit uncertain at first but I then felt Mal kiss back. Our lips moved in perfect sync with each other, I was saw fireworks and it was like an eruption was going off in my chest. I might have started the kiss but Mal was the one to finish it when we both needed to breathe.

"Well that feels familiar" she breathed.

"Yes" I breathed back.

"Ben" she said after we started to breathe normally.

"Mal" I said back.

"My turn" she said with a grin and she quickly kissed me. This time as our lips were pushed against each other I felt Mal's hands move up into my hair and I tightened my hand on the bottom of her back to deepen the kiss. I moved my right hand and cupped the left hand side of her face and we started to kiss more passionately. We kept breaking apart for a couple of seconds and then crushing our lips together when we were able to breathe again. After a while I rested my forehead against Mal's and we just stared into each other's eyes.

"I love you so much Mal" I said.

"I love you so much too Ben" she replied.

"Ben follow me" she said as she stepped away from me. I loosened my arms around her waist; however I didn't want her to leave. I wanted her to stay in my arms and never leave again.

"What are we doing?" I asked as I watched her start to pull her covers back.

"We are climbing into bed" she said.

"Mal" I said nervously and this made her look at me. I knew that we were getting back together but I didn't know how far I was ready to go.

"What?" She asked.

"I don't think I'm ready for-" I said but stopped myself when she pulled one brow up. I watched as she widened her eyes in shock when she realised what I was trying to say.

"Ben" she said as she cupped the right hand side of my face with her right hand.

"I'm not ready for that either. I just want to snuggle in bed" she told me which made me smile.

"We've never shared a bed" I said as I moved closer to Mal so I could climb into bed with her.

"I know, I think this development feels right at the moment. Well it does for me" she said as she looked up at me nervously.

"Same here" I said. She grinned at me and I grinned back at her; I was so glad that we were able to fix things; yes me and Mal may have fell asleep in each other's arms before but being in bed together was different. Mal was right this development was what we needed. We needed to be close to each other; we needed to tell each other that we loved each other and reassure each other that we were never going to leave each other again. I slowly stood up and pulled my keys and phone from my blazer and threw my blazer over Mal's computer chair. I slowly slid my phone and keys onto her bedside cabinet. I then sat down and slowly kicked my shoes off and turned to look at Mal who was now lying on her side in bed looking at me.

"Come here then, my beastie" she said with a grin. I grinned back and dove into bed with her; I quickly slid my arms around her waist and pulled her to me.

"Come here, my beautiful dragon" I said before pushing my lips against hers.


	6. Chapter 6

_*Ben's POV*_

* * *

Me and Mal kept kissing passionately for what felt like a blissful eternity, however I pulled away when I felt Mal loosen my tie.

"What are you doing now?" I flirted.

"I want to be close to you" she flirted back.

"How do you intend to do that?" I laughed as she pulled my tie off. I watched as she threw my tie to the other end of the room.

"By getting rid of that and undoing a couple of buttons" she said as she undone four buttons of my shirt.

"It's not as if I haven't seen you topless before" she flirted as she rested her head against my bare chest.

"Yes well I always knew you were perving on me when we go swimming" I flirted.

"Well you are my boyfriend, I'm allowed" she said against my chest.

"Yes" I said quickly and tightened my arms around her waist.

"And anyway you stare at me when we go swimming, even though I wear a t-shirt over my swimsuit sometimes" she flirted as she stroked my chest. I took a deep breath as I felt tingles run through my body at her touch.

"Sorry" she said as she stopped stroking my chest and looking up at me.

"No don't stop" I said.

"Why?" She asked.

"I like it" I admitted. I watched as she smirked and she started to trace circular patterns on my chest.

"I don't think you realise how you affect me" I stated.

"I think I know" she countered.

"As you affect me the same way" she said smiling at me. I quickly pressed a kiss to her nose; I smiled as she snuggled back into my chest and then pressed a kiss against my chest.

"You've never done that before" I muttered.

"Do you want me to do it again?" She asked.

"Yes" I breathed and she pressed another kiss against my chest. I then looked down at her and grinned as she slowly looked up at me.

"Come here" I said and I pulled her close to me. We stared into each other's eyes and we crushed our lips together and we slipped into another passionate making out session. That only stopped when we heard the dorm door open.

* * *

Me and Mal quickly broke apart and I dove down and slid slightly down the bed so now my head was now rested on Mal's chest. I looked up and saw that Mal had pulled one brow up in my confusion at my actions. I smiled at her and moved slightly which accidentally caught her side which made her giggle. I then heard a noise in the room which sounded like someone turning around to look at us.

"Mal!" I heard Evie exclaim.

"Yes" Mal said looking up at Evie.

"What are you doing?" Evie asked incredulously.

"Erm" Mal said slowly.

"I thought you were upset over Ben" Evie snapped.

"I was" Mal countered as she quickly glanced at me.

"Well what is all this" Evie said as I heard her move closer to the bed.

"I thought you loved Ben" Evie stated bluntly.

"I do" Mal agreed.

"Well it doesn't look like it" she snapped sarcastically.

"I spoke to Jane and she said that Ben was looking for you. He obviously didn't find you" I heard her say. I watched as Mal opened her mouth to speak but Evie cut her off.

"It didn't take you long to get over him did it?" she stated.

"Evie!" Mal snapped. I tightened my hands on her hips and this made her steal another look down at me.

"Well it didn't. Oh well it should teach Ben a lesson I guess, he shouldn't have broken up with you if he didn't actually mean it" she said. Mal looked down at me again and she bit her lip. I knew Evie was only saying what she was saying as she was trying to protect Mal and was still annoyed at me; even though she sent me to go and look for Mal.

"Evie" Mal said attempting to defend me.

"Speaking of Ben I've gave him a piece of my mind" she said.

"Have you?" She asked as she looked back down at me. I pursed my lips together and rested my head against her chest.

"Yes" Evie said.

"If he's going to treat you like that Mal you're probably better off without him. I didn't realise that he was such a jerk" she said sighing.

"Evie" Mal said.

"What?" she asked.

"Calm down" Mal warned her.

"Why? How can you be so calm?" she asked frantically.

"Because I love Ben" Mal stated and I pulled away from her and looked up at her. I smiled and then mouthed the words _'I love you too'_ which made Mal smile back.

"But you are-" Evie started.

"Actually who is that?" she asked and I heard movement which told me that she had walked towards the bed. Mal looked down at me and then she slowly pulled the covers back to reveal me cuddling into her chest. I saw Evie's eyes widen, especially as she noticed my shirt was half unbuttoned.

"Who else would I be here with?" Mal asked.

"Ben I'm so sorry" she said quickly trying to defend what she had just said about me.

"It's ok, I know you VK's are protective of each other" I answered back.

"It looks like you've made your choice" Evie said.

"Audrey won't be pleased" she teased.

"I don't care what Audrey would think. She just thinks there's a chance of getting back with me. But I can assure you that I love Mal and I don't want anyone else" I said as Mal looked at me and she smiled.

"I'm so sorry Mal. You were right; we will make this work no matter what. I can't lose you; I love you far too much" I said as I looked into her eyes. She grinned back at me; I knew that Mal would think that I was saying it a little bit for Evie's benefit. But all that mattered to me was that I had my Mal back, and this was how it was going to stay.

"So you two are back together then?" Evie teased.

"What gave that away?" Mal said as she looked down at me and smiled.

"Nothing really" I heard Evie laugh.

"However" Evie said bluntly which made both me and Mal turn to look at her.

"What are you going to do about Audrey?" She asked.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Well she is going around telling everyone that you two are going to get back together" Evie explained.

"What?" Mal said slowly. I looked at her and pulled her towards me and started to stroke her back.

"We will just set everyone straight Mal, I never gave her any reason to think that I wanted to get back to her" I said trying to reassure me

"Mal you are my girlfriend and I love you" I muttered so only she could hear. She pushed her face close to mine and brushed her nose against mine.

"And I love you too, my handsome boyfriend" she muttered back. We stared into each other's eyes for a couple of seconds before she smirked.

"What?" I asked.

"I've just had an idea" she stated smugly.

"Care to share?" I laughed as I sat up.

"Not yet" she laughed as she shook her head.

"How is that fair?" I asked.

"I never claimed to play fair" she teased.

"Ben do you trust me?" She asked.

"Of course" I answered quickly.

"Well just play along" she said winking at me as she sat up.

"Ok Mal what do you want me to do?" I asked her.

"Go down to the court yard with Evie. I'll come down and find you in fifteen minutes, and just play along" she stated. I saw a glint in her eye and it didn't stop me from smiling at her.

"Anything for you" I said and I quickly kissed her. Before she went to move away from me she pressed a brief kiss against my lips. I watched as she climbed off her bed and then walked across her room and picked my tie up.

"I wonder how that got there" Evie teased. I watched as Mal winked at her and then passed me my tie.

"Behave" she warned her as I quickly fastened my buttons. She looked at me and winked at me as I started to tie my tie around my neck.

"I would love to know what you are planning on doing" I said as I pulled my shoes on.

"Why spoil the surprise?" She teased as she walked up to me. She quickly pressed a kiss on the top of my head and then quickly walked into the bathroom.

"We better get going, Mal won't like it if we don't do as we are told" Evie laughed.

"Let's go" I said as I stood up and threw my blazer on.

"See you soon Mal" I called out to her.

"See you soon" she shouted back. I smiled at Evie and followed her out of the dorm; wondering what on earth Mal had planned.

* * *

Me and Evie were stood waiting in the court yard talking and I then heard someone say my name and unfortunately it wasn't Mal.

"Hey Bennyboo" I heard Audrey say as she walked up to me.

"Hi Audrey" I said politely.

"We need to talk, in private" she said as she looked at Evie.

"No thank you Audrey" I said.

"But we need to talk about us" she stated.

"There is no us Audrey I'm-" I started but stopped when I saw Mal walking towards me.

"Hello Audrey" Mal said sweetly.

"Hello" Audrey answered with a fake smile.

"Come on Ben, we need to talk" Audrey stated.

"Erm" I said looking at Mal.

"I need a word first if that is ok Ben?" Mal asked.

"Of course" I said and I stepped away from Audrey. Me and Mal walked a little bit away and stood next to a tree.

"What's next?" I asked her.

"Come closer" she said and I stood closer to her.

"Closer" I said and I stood close to her so my stomach was now against hers.

"Now Benny" Mal said.

"Let's put these rumours to rest" she said and she pulled on my blazer and pulled me to her so I was now pushing her against the tree and she quickly crushed her lips against mine. I then slid my arms around her waist and pulled her to me. I swept my tongue across her lips and she opened her mouth and I slid my tongue into her mouth. I heard her moan against my lips and I then heard Audrey gasp. This made Mal pull away from me and smile at me; she quickly brushed her nose against mine.

"Ben" I heard Audrey exclaim and she walked up to me and Mal.

"What on earth is all this? You broke up?" Audrey spat.

"We got back together" Mal stated.

"No you didn't" she said.

"Yes we did" I said as I looked away from Mal and looked at Audrey.

"Thank you for supporting me this week Audrey, but I love Mal. And she has happily accepted to be my girlfriend again" I said proudly.

"But she doesn't suit you" she said.

"I think I will make that decision" I said bluntly as I was started to get annoyed at her. It was none of her business; and I didn't like the tone that she was using.

"I'm sorry Audrey but I only see you as a friend" I stated. I watched as she puffed and stormed off.

"Do you think that will sort those rumours out?" Mal teased.

"Yes. I think there were a few people watching" I teased back as I stroked the bottom of her back.

"Mal?" I asked.

"Yes Ben" she stated.

"Talking about developments" I said.

"Right?" She said slowly.

"You can say no" I started nervously.

"Ben just say it" she said with a smile.

"Don't feel pressured" I stated.

"Ok" she said.

"Do you want to stay in my dorm with me tonight?" I muttered so no one else could hear. I watched as she widened her eyes.

"Erm" she said slowly.

"You don't need to, I just want you close at the moment" I said.

"Same" she said smiling.

"Let's go to my dorm and I'll pack a bag" she said.

"Come on then" I said stepping away from her and taking her hand in mine.

"Come on then" she said mimicking my voice.

"Behave dragon" I warned her.

"Ok else what?" She joked as we walked up to Evie and the three of us started to walk in the direction of the dorm building.


	7. Chapter 7

_*Ben's POV*_

* * *

After Mal quickly packing a bag and getting some teasing from Evie we were both now walking into my dorm. I knew we both meant it when we said that we both weren't ready for a certain development in our relationship. But at the moment I just wanted Mal to be close; just for now - I knew that we couldn't always be this close.

"Well this is different" she said as she slid her bag onto the floor as I locked my dorm door.

"I have fell asleep in here before but you've always woke me up and taken me back to my dorm" she said turning to look at me.

"Like the perfect gentleman" she teased.

"And I'm not now?" I laughed as I moved and stood in front of her.

"Are you insinuating that I'm now not a 'perfect gentleman' because I have asked whether you want to spend the night cuddling with me?" I teased.

"No, because I know it's only cuddling" she flirted as she stepped away from me and walked towards my bed.

"Yeah well your my cuddle buddy" I teased as I watched her sit down on my bed.

"I like that title" she laughed.

"Good" I said as I walked towards my bed and sat next to her.

"Because you are the only one who will ever have that title" I said as I wrapped my arms around her waist.

"Same to you, it wouldn't feel right cuddling anyone else" she teased. I pouted at her and I heard her laugh.

"I'm only kidding Ben, why would I want to cuddle anyone else? When I have my beast" she said as she stroked my chin. She quickly pressed a kiss to my lips before starting to stare into my eyes.

"And I have my dragon" I purred.

"Hmmm" she said as she brushed her nose against mine. I suddenly felt mischievous and knew I was going to end up play fighting with her; but I didn't mind. I liked play fighting with Mal; I always have. I brushed my nose against hers and quickly moved my face and licked her cheek.

"Ben!" she shrieked which made me chuckle.

"One nil" I laughed.

"Really?" She laughed and went to kiss me again but quickly moved her face and licked my cheek.

"More like one one" she stated.

"I love it when you get competitive" I teased.

"So do you" she accused.

"Always" I said as I pulled her close to me and she rested her head against my shoulder.

"Ben" she said against my shoulder after a while of us sitting in silence enjoying each other's company.

"Hmmm" I responded as I started to play with her hair.

"I'm glad things worked out the way it did" she said.

"Me too" I said happily. I watched as she looked up at me and smirked; I smiled back and she rested her face against my cheek and she then licked my cheek.

"Mal" I puffed.

"Two nil" she laughed and she jumped out of my arms.

"Just you wait until I get hold of you" I joked as I watched her retreat backwards up the bed not taking her eyes from me.

"Promises, promises" she teased as I followed her.

* * *

After teasing each other for a little bit and a little bit of making out we were now cuddling in bed. Mal had drifted off to sleep a little while ago and I was running my fingers through her hair. God I loved her; I don't know whether it was due to the brief separation but something felt different this time. But a good different; I felt closer to Mal. I knew I loved her before I broke up with her; however right now I felt as if I loved her even more if that was ever possible. We lay like this for what felt like a blissful eternity and I then heard my phone go off. I slowly and carefully moved so I wouldn't wake Mal; I looked at my phone and saw that my mother was ringing me. She probably was worried about me; I said I was only going to pick something up and that was a few hours ago.

"Hi mother" I said as I answered the phone.

"Hi Ben are you ok?" She asked sounding concerned.

"Yes I'm more than ok" I said happily as I looked down at Mal snuggled into my chest.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"Well me and Mal are back together" I answered with a very large grin.

"Oh Ben I'm so happy for you" she exclaimed down the phone.

"Thank you" I replied.

"You both should come for dinner" she said excitedly.

"No I stated

"No?" She questioned.

"I'm staying in my dorm tonight, with Mal" I advised slowly. I didn't hear my mother say anything for a few seconds I was about to see if she was still there but she answered.

"With Mal?" She repeated slowly.

"Yes" I informed her.

"Benjamin" she said sternly.

"It's not like that mother, I promise. We are only cuddling, I knew that this is probably something you may or may not want to hear but after everything that has happened we just want to be close to each other. Neither of us is ready for anything else at the moment apart from cuddling" I explained trying to defend myself and Mal. I hoped that my mother would value me being honest with her; instead of her hearing it from someone else when people saw me and Mal leaving my dorm together in the morning.

"I see" she replied.

"I can tell that you two have been talking about it" she said. I knew she wasn't entirely happy but she seemed content enough with what I had just said.

"Yes" I said.

"Mother I really thought I had lost her" I said as I stroked Mal's back.

"I know, but I told you things would work themselves out" she answered happily.

"Yeah" I said happily as I watched Mal yawn in her sleep.

"Well you both need to come for dinner tomorrow" she stated.

"We will" I answered.

"I'll see you both tomorrow" she said.

"See you tomorrow mother" I replied.

"Love you Ben, good night" she said.

"Love you Mother, good night" I answered.

"Say hi to Mal from me and your father" she advised.

"I will do, when she wakes up" I laughed.

"Bye" I heard her say.

"Bye" I said and I ended the call. I went to put my phone back but I felt Mal moving. I looked down at her and noticed that she was stretching.

"Is something wrong?" she muttered as she slowly opened her eyes and looked up at me.

"No" I said.

"Good" she said and she snuggled back into my chest. I knew she was still tired but I had to speak to Mal; I needed her to clear something up.

"Mal" I said.

"Hmm" she grunted into my chest.

"Can I ask you something?" I asked.

"Of course" she said moving slightly so she could look up at me.

"You know that lad?" I asked her. I watched as her eyes widened slightly before answering.

"Ethan?" she asked.

"Yes" I answered.

"What actually happened between you and him? You don't need to tell me, it's just I was worried about you" I quickly explained.

"I danced with him and-" she said stopping herself.

"And?" I prompted. I felt my stomach start to churn in case she said something happened between them.

"We swapped numbers" she admitted.

"He has your number?" I asked quickly.

"Yes" she advised.

"I panicked" she said quickly as her cheeks struck red.

"But don't worry I've put him straight" she said quickly to defend herself.

"What do you mean?" I asked as the feeling in my stomach started to subside.

"He text me before I came looking for you and I text him back. Don't worry it was nothing" she said as she stroked my chest.

"He text me again when I was talking to you and I put him straight before I came looking for you and Evie in the courtyard" she added.

"What did you say to him?" I asked happily as I now knew there was no chance he was ever going to come any near my Mal.

"I told him that I had got back together with you and I was sorry if I upset him. He text me back saying that I didn't upset him but he would still like to be friends and maybe spend some time together in the future. I don't think that is too much of a problem, however I don't know whether I would actually go and see him" she said as if she was thinking out loud.

"Hmmm only if I go with you" I answered as I pulled her closer to me.

"Really Ben are you jealous?" she laughed.

"Mal I don't think you realise how irresistible you really are" I stated.

"You have all the men chasing after you" I added. I watched as she smiled at me and she quickly kissed my cheek.

"Well they can chase me all they want" she said before she brushed her nose against mine.

"I only want you" she added which made me grin at her.

"Good" I said.

"I love you Ben" she said.

"Hmmm I love you too Mal" I purred and I pulled her towards me and we shared a long and loving kiss.

"We best get ready for bed, we'll have to order some food as well" she said.

"Yeah" I agreed.

"We have a busy day tomorrow" I advised.

"We do?" she asked.

"When you were asleep my mother rang me" I told her.

"Right" she said slowly.

"She knows we are spending the night together" I said quickly.

"Ben!" Mal exclaimed as she sat up.

"She's going to be thinking that we are... You know" she said nervously.

"No she's not" I said trying to reassure her.

"Eh?" she asked sounding confused.

"I've told her that we are only cuddling, I told her that we are both not ready for... You know" I said nervously.

"Oh" she answered.

"I'm sorry if that upsets you" I said as I stroked her side to reassure her.

"I promise my mother won't make it awkward when she next sees you" I quickly added.

"It's ok" she finally answered.

"How does that mean we have a busy day tomorrow?" she asked.

"Well she wants us to have dinner with her and my father tomorrow" I said.

"Right, that shouldn't be a problem" she answered with a smile.

"And I need to do some assignments" I added.

"So you have a busy day not me" she teased.

"Well I thought you could also stay over" I suggested.

"If you're not getting sick of me already" I teased.

"No I'm not" she laughed before she moved close to me and quickly kissed me.

"Hmmm" I said after she pulled away.

"It would be nice to sleep in my other room" she laughed.

"So no sleep over then?" I joked as I pouted.

"Well it depends if you're parents allow it" she said.

"Well you never know" I said.

"Yeah" she said.

"You order food, while I get ready for bed" she said as she moved away from me.

"Ok what do you want?" I asked her.

"Well you know what I usually get from the few takeaways that we use so surprise me" she joked as she jumped off my bed and picked her bag up.

"Ok" I said with a smile. I watched as she walked into my bathroom and closed the door. I stared at the bathroom door before reaching over and picking my phone up. I loved Mal, and I knew that I wasn't going to let her go ever again.


	8. Chapter 8

_*Ben's POV*_

* * *

After having a night watching TV, eating plenty of junk food and talking me and Mal enjoyed a long and peaceful sleep. When I woke up I frowned when I saw that Mal wasn't lying next to me.

"Mal" I said as I looked around the room. I couldn't see her bag either; this started to make me panic. Why would Mal leave and not wake me up?

"Mal" I said again. It instantly made me feel stupid as it looked as if she wasn't there. I frowned again and went to sit up.

"Yes Ben?" I heard a voice say.

"Mal are you there?" I asked as I stood up.

"Who else would be in your dorm?" She asked as she walked in from my bathroom.

"No one" I answered as I walked up towards her.

"I thought you had left me" I said sadly as I pouted.

"Ben I told you yesterday that I'm never going to leave" she said as she wrapped her arms around my waist. I wrapped my arms around her waist and pulled her to me.

"I don't want you to leave" I said before brushing my nose against hers.

"Fine I won't" she teased.

"On one condition" she stated.

"Ok" I answered slowly.

"You don't leave me either" she said as a smile spread across her face.

"Never" I said and I quickly pressed a kiss against her lips.

"Why did you not answer when I first shouted for you?" I asked.

"I didn't hear you" she stated.

"Mal you have hyper senses" I stated.

"True" she agreed.

"Well then" I prompted as I hoped there wasn't something wrong.

"I wanted to tease you a little bit" she admitted with a smirk.

"You devious fairy!" I said and reached down and picked her up.

"Ben!" she exclaimed as she wrapped her legs around my waist so she wouldn't fall.

"Yes" I teased as I tightened my hands onto top of her thighs.

"You know what" she snapped as she wrapped her arms around my neck.

"Do I?" I asked, playing stupid to it.

"I think you are taking this being close to me to a whole different level" she flirted.

"Don't see you complaining" I flirted as I brushed my nose against hers.

"And anyway I've carried you like this before" I said smugly.

"True" she said before planting a brief kiss against my lips.

"Come on then, back to bed" I said carrying her towards my bed.

"Go on then" she laughed and we continued enjoying being close to each other.

* * *

We were now on our way back to Auradon castle to go and have dinner with my parents. I looked down at Mal and when she noticed that I was looking at her she looked up at me and smiled. I had enjoyed having a lie in with Mal; endlessly talking about little stupid things and cuddling. Nothing could knock mine or Mal's mood; even when Evie started teasing her we went back to Mal's dorm to get some more clothes. I loved the smile that Mal was constantly wearing; I made a mental note to make sure that Mal was always happy. I know that I had broken the promise I made to myself and Mal to make sure that she was always happy but I now knew what it felt like to lose Mal; and I was going to make sure that it never happened again.

"Someone seems happy?" she teased.

"Of course. I'm with you" I answered back.

"Look at you trying to be romantic" she teased.

"I don't try. I succeed" I stated.

"Ok" she joked.

"Oi!" I said jabbing her in the side.

"What?" she asked.

"You know what" I said.

"Do I?" she asked with a smirk.

"Yes you do" I said and I started to tickle her right side.

"Ben!" she exclaimed.

"What?" I asked as I continued to tickle her. She continued to shriek and giggle for a few moments and I then watched as her eyes widened slightly.

"Fine, fine" she said between giggling.

"You are romantic!" she shrieked.

"Thank you" I said as I stopped ticking her. I pulled her towards me and planted a kiss on the top of her head.

"How was that fair?" she snapped.

"It isn't" I stated as the limonene came to a stop.

"I'll remember that" she warned.

"Promises promises baby" I muttered as the door opened. I saw her roll her eyes before I let go of her hand so I could climb out of the car. I stepped to one side and watched as she climbed out. I watched her look towards Chip who already had hold of her bag.

"I can get that" she said walking towards him.

"It's ok I have it Mal" Chip said happily and we walked away and into the castle. I chuckled at her and she looked up at me.

"What?" she asked.

"You're really cute" I said. I watched as her cheeks started to go pink.

"Behave Ben!" she snapped as she slid her hand into mine and then started to lead me into the castle after Chip as I chuckled at her.

* * *

"Hey you two" I heard my mother say as we walked into the main hall.

"Hello" we both said together. We both looked at each other; and smiled.

"Why don't you go and put your stuff in your room? I have something I need to do" I said to her.

"Ok" she said and she walked up to Chip and took her bag and walked up the stairs.

"Mother" I said as I watched her until she disappeared.

"Yes" she answered.

"Can I have a quick word please, before Mal gets back?" I asked as I looked at her.

"Of course" she answered sounding concerned.

"Let's go to my office" I said.

"Ok" I said and we walked in the direction of my office.

* * *

"So what do you want to speak to me about?" my mother said as we both sat on the sofa in my office.

"I just need your advice" I started.

"Ok" she said slowly.

"What on?" she asked.

"My relationship with Mal" I said.

"Ok, what's wrong?" she questioned.

"Nothing" I stated.

"Ben I don't understand" my mother said sounding confused.

"Before I loved Mal, but now that we have got back together I feel even closer to Mal; I thought I loved her before but that is nothing compared to how much I love her right now" I explained which made her smile slowly at me.

"What?" I asked.

"I think I know what's happening here" she said happily.

"What is happening?" I asked slowly.

"Ben I think that you breaking up with Mal has made you both realise what it feels like to lose one another. You now value each other more than you did before. It happened to me and your father" she advised.

"Did it?" I questioned.

"Yeah" she answered.

"In the first year me and your father broke up; it was over something really trivial. We ended up spending a week apart; it was hell of both of us" she said sadly as she started to remember the memory of losing my father.

"How did you get back together?" I asked.

"Well I was walking through the village and I bumped into some of Gaston's friends. They chased me through the village; I was petrified. However when they had me cornered one of them jumped on me but he wasn't there for very long. Your father pulled him off me and started fighting with the both of them. After they wandered off, bruised and with their tails between their legs; your father explained that he came looking for me as he couldn't bear to loose me. We got back together; and well you know the rest of the story" she explained.

"Yeah" I said as I looked down to the floor.

"I never want to lose Mal again Mother. I couldn't bare it" I said sadly as I pursed my lips together and looked back up at her.

"Well there should be no reason to; yes you will argue and you will need time apart to calm down. But I don't think you will lose each other" she advised trying to pacify me.

"What makes you think that?" I asked.

"Because you look at Mal the way your father looks at me. Yes you loved her before but you now value your relationship with Mal a lot more now you know the loss of losing her" she said with a smile.

"Yeah I never want to feel like that again" I noted.

"Things are going to change Mother. I want to make sure that I get to spend at least one day on a weekend with Mal and one night a week. I won't take Mal for granted ever again. I want her to know that I'm never going to leave her again. I want her to feel loved" I explained as I looked at my mother.

"I do feel loved" I heard Mal say. I turned around and saw that Mal was now walking into my office with a small smile on her face. I started to feel nervous as she walked next to me; I didn't want her to feel like I was coming on too strong with her. I didn't want her to feel as if we were rushing things in case she didn't feel the same as me; I wanted everything to be perfect for her. I watched as Mal stood next to me and she wrapped her arm around my shoulder and looked down at me.

"Someone's worrying that I'll go somewhere" she teased as I wrapped my arm around her waist.

"That's because I don't want you to" I said.

"Only if you come with me" she said as she started to run her fingers through my hair. I quickly looked at my mother who was grinning at the both of us.

"Of course" I answered as I looked back at her.

"Well don't worry" she said soothingly.

"I'm glad you managed to sort things out" my mother said happily.

"So do I" Mal said.

"Ben you don't need to worry; like your mother said we will still argue but that doesn't mean we are going to break up every time. I'm worried just like you; but I do know what you mean. I feel a lot closer to you now than I did before" she said. I tightened my arm around her waist.

"You both don't need to waste time worrying" my mother said.

"I know, and I know we will be fine" Mal said.

"Of course" I said.

"You know how I know Belle?" she said as she looked at my mother.

"How?" my mother asked.

"Because I can tell you one thing that I know for definite" Mal said as she looked at me and started to stare into my eyes.

"What's that sweetie?" I heard my mother ask. I couldn't take my eyes off Mal; it was like my whole world revolved around Mal; and I was fine by that. She was my world.

"I'm going to marry your son one day" she said proudly with a large grin. I widened my eyes slightly at what she said and I couldn't help but grin back at her. Mal had just told my mother that she wanted to marry me one day.

"Come on you two" Belle said happily after we stood in silence for a couple of seconds digesting what Mal had just said. As my mother left the room I stepped away from Mal and slowly slid my hand into hers and smiled at her.

"Was that too much?" she asked nervously.

"No" I stated as I started to grin at her.

"Because I know I'm going to marry you one day as well" I answered. I watched as she grinned at me.

"I know that must have took a lot for you to say" I said as I started to lead her from my office.

"It did. But you mean a lot to me Ben" she answered.

"And you mean a lot to me as well Mal" I said happily as we left the office to go and have dinner with my parents.

* * *

 **Hey guys, I hoped you liked this little short for my main story - Disney Descendants: Happily Ever After? I have enjoyed writing this and I think it will explain some of Ben and Mal's behaviour later on in my main story. Thanks for taking the time to read this story. Much love RSD xoxoxoxo.**


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